It does sound like the usual confusion over the roles of Sponsor and butturer. The requirements to be a sponsor for a 138 are simply the requirement of being related (in a specific way - ie: sibling, uncle, aunt, etc) to the main applicant. Note that the main applicant does not have to be the one who satisfies the basic requirements of skill, age, etc, but does need to be the one who is related to the sponsor. For a 139 sponsor they also need to have been living in the designated records, etc.
Requirements for the butturer are more tangible (ie: income). The butturer does not need to be related to you in any way, but simply need to be willing to sign a form with CentreLink which makes them responsible for any outlays which CentreLink makes to the immigrants in the first 2 years. This is in part what the bond is supposed to cover, and will be held back first, but the butturer is responsible for all outlays CentreLink makes to the butturees above and beyond the bond amount. This is typically why butturer tend to be relatives - you know the old saying - "blood is thicker than water".
Cheers, Brian
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